is a big huner a blue water boat?

[Paul Cossman]

Passage 42 windshield

Henk, the "regular" fare at the time we made the trip from Auckland to Ensenada was $18,000 USD, and they give you a 10% discount if you pay 3 months in advance and a 20% discount if you pay 5 months in advance. That was for a 42 foot boat. They also bargain when it gets close to shipping time and they find themselves with extra space on deck.Rich, we have a Passage 42 with that big windshield, and I was worried about it also. Our boat was a couple years old when we got it, and the windshield had bowed in the middle so that it separated about 3/4 inch from the middle support. I didn't trust it, so I ordered a new one from Hunter (for $1,800). We installed it with adequate adhesive over the center support and have not had a repeat of the bowing situation.We have never had a huge breaking wave break over that windshield. On a number of occasions we have buried our bow into oncoming seas and have had green water back to the mast. But never a big breaker. Our practice is that when we are close hauled and the apparent wind averages over 40 knots, we either heave to or go to the (18' diameter Paratech) sea anchor. That avoids the really large waves breaking over that windshield.

 

[alan]

Rob, respectfuly...

...I would disagree about that exchange being "Hunter Bashing". As pointed out, those questions were not all Jeff Halpern's, but rather a compilation of issues (real and imagined) by other posters on that site. Indeed many of those posters do not like ANY production boat still produced. And, they certainly do bash BUT, I think the questions and answers were well thought out and informative. Jeff, who attended the same high school as I (we only met on the web), is an architect who will design cruising and racing sailboats in his next life. While he frequently defends Hunters, he is not shy about discussing what he does not like. I think that Henk and a number of others from this site know him from the web also. alan

 

[delivery crew]

Hunters as bluewater boats?

A lot of good stuff here. Here are a couple of observations from someone who has sailed through 3 day 45 knot gales way offshore on a 55 foot custom passagemaker (never again). The Hunter should be fine for short hopping in the Carribbean. For 10 day to 2 week passages offshore it is entirely a different matter. Reliable forecasts between the the Carribean and the Northeast are good for 3-5 days at best. What are you going to do when you are 300 miles east of Jacksonville and 300 miles southwest of Bermuda? One can not imagine the steepness of waves when the wind is counter to the Stream or the eddies east of the Stream. No matter what you do you will have waves break over the boat and have knockdowns in those conditions. These conditions are perilous to most production boats and Hunters are no exception. Things that you never would consider have a propensity to fail in these conditions. First off the hull will flex enough for your windows and hatches to leak constantly. Large unsupported ports will and can wash out. Second having a large freeboard with a shallow keel will make the boat very hard to handle in 25 foot steep waves. You better have 2 hydraulic autopilots (1 spare) since you will not want to spend much time in the cockpit in your harness. Dodgers are no use as the waves will take them off the boat the first day if they are up. Bottom line is that bluewater sailing has a lot of definitions. If you are passagemaking in areas like the North Atlantic. Forget about it. If you are island hopping through the Caribbean- it is a different story. Don't believe me?- bring your boat directly back to the Chesapeake from Tortola this spring. Don't stop in the Bahamas, Florida, or anywhere else till you hit Norfolk. Our friends did in their 46' production boat and they have the insurance check for the boat's insured value to prove it.